“Delta teams continue to safely manage through compounding factors affecting our operation this weekend, including higher-than-planned unscheduled absences in some of our work groups, weather, and air traffic control constraints,” a Delta Air Lines spokesperson said Sunday. “Canceling a flight is always our last resort, and we sincerely apologize to our customers for any disruption to their travel plans.”
Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport and the New York City area’s Newark Liberty International were most impacted by Monday’s cancellations, with Newark alone accounting for more than 100 canceled flights.
According to FlightAware, there were 634 US flight cancellations Saturday and 868 canceled Sunday.
“More than any time in our history, the various factors currently impacting our operation — weather and air traffic control, vendor staffing, increased Covid case rates contributing to higher-than-planned unscheduled absences in some work groups — are resulting in an operation that isn’t consistently up to the standards Delta has set for the industry in recent years,” said Delta Chief Customer Experience Officer Allison Ausband in an online post.
But critics say airlines should have anticipated these issues ahead of the summer travel season.
“When you stress-test the airline operation model, that’s when you see the same results,” Capt. Dennis Tajer, spokesperson for the Allied Pilots Association, the pilots union at American Airlines, said earlier this month.
CNN Business’ Chris Isidore contributed to this report.